Hundreds of Englewood residents gathered Monday for the groundbreaking of The Re-Up, a $6.4 million mixed-use project expected to transform a long-vacant building at 1210 W. 59th St. into RAGE’s headquarters and retail space for Black-owned businesses, as the
Hundreds of Englewood residents packed in for a groundbreaking that felt bigger than a construction milestone. For Asiaha Butler. the executive director of the Resident Association of Greater Englewood. it was personal—an outcome shaped by years of organizing after the 2020 civil unrest and Black Lives Matter protests.
“there were tears,” Butler said during Monday’s ceremony. “People who possibly felt that they didn’t have a voice, their voices got heard. What they wanted, we organized around and co-created together.”
The project, led by RAGE, is a $6.4 million mixed-use development dubbed The Re-Up. It will convert a vacant building at 1210 W. 59th St. into RAGE’s new headquarters and add retail space for Black-owned businesses. RAGE is currently located at 6620 S. Union Ave.
The investment is also tied to the way Englewood leaders describe their goals for the corridor. Butler called 59th Street “the corridor to watch,” especially for people traveling from Midway to the Obama Center. “You can take one bus and go all the way there,” she said.
Monday’s turnout—about 400 people—reflected that momentum, with Butler describing the celebration as fueled by community pride. “It’s nothing but love and pride,” she said. “Residents are excited to see something happening here.”
The Re-Up grew out of a dream Butler said she developed in 2021 as an “economic justice strategy.” She linked the planning to the sense of urgency she saw in her South Side community after the 2020 unrest.
RAGE’s funding package includes a $2.5 million Neighborhood Opportunity Fund grant from the city. described in a news release from Mayor Brandon Johnson’s office as the organization’s first city grant. The project will also receive property tax incentives intended to generate over $200,000 in savings over 12 years, according to the release.
Johnson said the development reflects resident-driven determination. “The Re-Up reflects the vision, determination and organizing power of Englewood residents who have invested in their neighborhood and refused to let disinvestment define its future,” he said in the release.
The road to Monday’s moment was not smooth. RAGE purchased the former Leon’s Bar-B-Que spot in 2023 for $35,000, after it sat vacant for more than a decade. Butler said the redevelopment stalled while they waited for permits to be approved, and construction didn’t begin until last year.
Now, the project is expected to be finished in the first quarter of 2027.
Butler said she learned to stay patient while the process moved slowly. “I’m happy to be extremely patient,” she said as she described how she’s been navigating development work.
She also recalled how difficult the early stages were for potential tenants. Some businesses that had expressed interest in leasing retail space ended up closing. “Shortly after COVID. [businesses] were really hurting. and some of the restaurants who had a letter of interest for The Re-Up went out of business. ” Butler said.
The Re-Up, which stands for the RAGE Economic Upliftment Project, is planned as a 7,950-square-foot building. Butler said the first floor will include two tenants, while the second floor will house RAGE’s headquarters.
Even now, RAGE and residents are still weighing what kinds of businesses they want in the space. Butler said ideas have included restaurants, retail, offices, a gym or wellness center, and a space for businesses to print.
“We lack so many amenities and so many types of businesses, and so we’ve heard a variety of different things,” Butler said.
There are also workforce requirements built into the plan. Butler said any tenant at the property will be required to hire from the community—employees who live in the 60621 or 60636 ZIP codes.
In terms of employment, Butler said the project is estimated to create 50 permanent jobs, with a goal of creating 150 new jobs over three years.
She framed The Re-Up as part of a broader push to unify Englewood and West Englewood. Butler said it will complement nearby investments, including the Englewood Nature Trail, and plans to expand Dion’s Dream Chicago and the Growing Home Englewood Farm Stand.
The timing of Monday’s event carried an added sense of momentum. The Obama Presidential Center—about 4 miles east of The Re-Up—is set to open to the public Friday.
Butler said that proximity makes the corridor focus even more meaningful. “[Fifty-ninth Street] is going to be the corridor to watch, especially coming from Midway to the Obama Center. You can take one bus and go all the way there,” she said.
Englewood 59th Street RAGE The Re-Up mixed-use development Black-owned businesses Neighborhood Opportunity Fund Brandon Johnson Obama Presidential Center